Let me just preface this by mentioning that KFC isn’t in my usual rotation of fast food restaurants. It’s not that I don’t enjoy crispy and fattening poultry, I’ve just never had good experiences with KFC chicken. I test the fate of the gods and decide to give them another shot about once every 5 years, hoping every time to end up satisfied and happy with my decision. Last night, I realized I hadn’t made a visit since 2004, so I decided to ride along when my buddies mentioned they were interested in trying out the “famous” grilled chicken.

Despite all their advertising for their newer, “healthier,” grilled chicken, I hate change and decided to go with a couple of pieces of their classic original recipe. However, I wasn’t completely ignorant of the benefits of a well balanced meal, so I opted to go for their $5 Fill-Up box (apparently they’re trying to compete with Subway and their $5 footlongs). Besides the chicken, it came with mashed potatoes, gravy, a biscuit, potato wedges, and a drink. Not a bad deal for $5, not bad at all.

To be honest, it tasted fantastic. The chicken was almost a little too greasy for me and I couldn’t bring myself to shove all of the crispy goodness down my throat, but the biscuit was absolutely top notch. I consider myself a bit of an instant potatoes connoisseur, so I may be being a little hard on KFC’s mashed potatoes, but they simply struck me as average. The real story here was the potato wedges. They were incredible! I had all of them, probably 20 or so, eaten by the time I’d made it back to the apartment. If I could order just a giant side of potato wedges and not mess with any of the chicken business, I’d be one of those 300 pound regulars you always see at KFC that make you wonder, ‘how the hell did they squeeze themselves into that tiny booth?’

Not all was bueno at the end of the day, though. Just like playing a drinking game with liquor while everyone else is downing beer, it was good while it lasted, but seemed like a bad idea shortly after. Maybe it was the 1200 calories that did me in, but I felt absolutely horrible for hours after the meal! I had to call it a night early, and I still felt horrible for the entire morning after! I never actually threw up, but I sure as hell wanted to.

Once again, the KFC gods let me down in the end. I wouldn’t recommend anyone put themselves through a Fill-Up box. Instead, take your $5 to Popeyes or Chuch’s. Remember, hunger is only temporary; regret lasts a lifetime.